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Parfum d’Empire Yuzu Fou ~ fragrance review

Summer is winding down. As the air cools, Eaux de Cologne seem to lose what little power they have; they fade away as quickly as you can apply them to skin. Still, I crave citrus fragrances as the temperature drops, and there are quite a few citrus perfumes that can stand up to fall and winter weather — Parfum d’Empire Yuzu Fou is one of them.

The dominant note, bigarade orange, or “bitter orange,” in Yuzu Fou is not sweet; though this type of orange is used to make candy and marmalade, Yuzu Fou will not make you think of desserts. Bigarade orange in Yuzu Fou is bitter, and its aromatic rind’s perfume is “spicy” (smelling of oily, unripe citrus peel mingling with fresh green coriander and cumin seeds).

During Yuzu Fou’s development, you’ll notice several “green” notes: menthol-mint, crisp verbena, a cilantro-like aroma, and an interesting “green-wood” scent I’ll assume is “bamboo.” As Yuzu Fou dries down, cedar joins bigarade orange and together these two notes produce a slightly “sweaty” accord. Yuzu Fou reminds me of Editions de Parfums Frédéric Malle Cologne Bigarade, but with much better lasting power and sillage.

Yuzu Fou is a hardy, cold-weather-resistant citrus perfume, and like many other Parfum d’Empire fragrances (Wazamba and Aziyadé to name just two) it packs a wallop. Since Crown Perfumery’s sensational Crown Imperial fragrance was discontinued, Yuzu Fou has become my favorite winter citrus perfume. Please comment if you know of other “frost-proof” citruses for winter.

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41 Comments

The same day that I tried Yuzu Fou I also tried Parfumerie Generale Yuzu Ab Irato, which I loved more. Somehow Yuzu Ab Irato was more fizzy and refreshing, but maybe Yuzu Fou is better for autumn season.

A very timely review for me. I spent the last half of summer searching for a citrus cologne to call my own, but failed to find anything that I was willing to plunk down the $ for (my favorite was Chanel Eau de Cologne, but if I’m going to shell out for a Les Exclusifs, that’s not going to be it). Come Labor Day, I finally gave up. It never occured to me to keep looking for an all-weather citrus. I’m definitely going to give this a try!

My favorite citrus is grapefruit and my favority grapefruit is Hermes’ Pamplemousse Rose, but it has zero lasting power on me. For someone who doesn’t have that issue (if anyone), I would think it would work beyond summer.

This review made me drool. I love citrus, especially bitter citrus, but several citrussy scents have given me heart palpitations (not the good kind), and I think yuzu is the culprit. So alas, I will not be trying this one. Of course, that makes your scent picture all the more valuable, since I can’t experience it for myself.

Boojum: I think I read somewhere that bitter/Seville orange can also cause heart palpitations…especially when concentrated as in herbal treatments. Thankfully, no increased heartbeat when I apply Yuzu Fou to skin or make marmalade!

Oh, thanks! I’ll look into that. I’m susceptible anyway, having mitral valve prolapse (closest I’ll get to MVP!), and I was allergic to orange juice when I was little, which is why I’ve suspected the yuzu.

Kevin, I fell in love with AC Grand Neroli after I received a sample over the summer (and then got some more samples). The vanilla warms it up a bit, making me think it might be a good fall citrus. In fact, sometimes it was too much warmth on those 98 degree days. It also wears like a skin scent.

The Atelier Colognes are all good but Grand Neroli is the one I find FBW.

Everything you say in your review makes this fragrance sound wonderful, but I had a really awful experience when I tried it. That “slightly sweaty” accord you mention was not slight in the least on me! I found it to be really really funky; it did not jive with my chemistry at all!

That said, I tried it in the heat of summer, and your review makes me think I should have waited a few months and tried it on a cooler day. All the same, lovely review from you.

I figured I would love this one since I love Diptyque Oyedo, another great yuzu scent, but it was too sweaty on me as JennyM notes above. It was on sale a while ago at Luckyscent, might try there and see if it’s still on sale.

Oh, Kevin, you’ve made me want to try this one after several reviews of damning scents with faint praise! And since I’m a fan of their Wazamba, it makes me want to try some of their other scents as well.

I’d say my favorite not-just-for-summer citrus would be Guerlain’s Philtre d’Amour. It also has a verbena note, which I love!

Oh, god, I love Philtre d’Amour! It somehow manages to circumvent the whole citrus-smelling-like-lemon-Pledge problem rather gracefully. Dang, I wish you hadn’t mentioned it, because now I’m remembering that I really need to get a FB of it… Drat.

(BTW, Rapple, love the new picture! I almost didn’t realize it was you!)

I agree with Philtre d’Amour. I also had a bad experience with Yuzu Fou, which is unfortunate because I love many of the Parfums d’Empire and I don’t have many issues with cumin, I wear Declaration Essence with no problems. Iskander is also a good citrus for all seasons

Hey Kevin. Nice review. I now can’t remember if I have a sample of Yuzu Fou because I just realized I’m getting it confused with Yuzu Rouge by 06130 (of which I *do* have the remnants of a tiny sample). If not, I’ll have to try it — as well as the PG Yuzu ab Irato that I’ve been wanting to try for awhile.

I think Diptyque Oyedo would be a good, cold-hardy citrus, and I look forward to wearing it as the weather cools. Tauer Orange Star is also *fantastic* and is one that I really love. And Hermès Concentré d’Orange Verte is one that I can really *only* tolerate when it’s chilly… otherwise it makes me a bit queasy!

I’m weeks behind on my NST feed and just getting to this post now. I have a small bottle of Yuzu Fou (from the luckyscent special, natch) and love it, so I ‘m pleased to make note of the other recommendations here. Yuza ab Irato is already on my list, but not the others, so thanks everyone!

Also, I thought my mother would like this one, but she finds the “sweat” aspect too strong. I usually can guess whether she’ll like something or not, but we’ve run into this issue a few times recently (most strongly in relation to a Diptique candle in The, which I absolutely love).